Source: Luigi Lugmayr, i4u.com
Samsung unveiled the NX series of hybrid cameras earlier this year. Hybrid means that the Samsung NX series combines the quality of DSLR cameras with the compactness of point-and-shoot cameras.
Source: Abac Cordero, The Philippine Star
Pacquiao’s historic rise as the first boxer to win seven world titles in different weight classes has led some people, especially the camp of Floyd Mayweather Jr., to raise serious doubts on his ability.
Pacquiao insists that he’s clean. In fact, he has filed charges against the Mayweathers and Golden Boy’s top brass, Oscar dela Hoya and Richard Schaefer, for trying to destroy his image as a champion.
This has led to a major impasse in the projected Pacquiao vs Mayweather fight in March. While there are efforts to save the fight, it’s most likely it won’t happen as earlier planned and scheduled.
Merchant said Pacquiao is not the first boxer to reap success as they moved up in weight, saying Dela Hoya himself started out at 130 pounds and ended up fighting and winning at 160 pounds.
“There are many precedents in boxing of smaller fighters to move up in weight division and be successful later in their careers,” said Merchant, also dropping the names of some great champions.
“Henry Armstrong turned pro at 120. He also fought for a middleweight championship. Alexis Arguello was a bantamweight when he started as a 16-year-old but he wound up fighting in the 140s,” he said.
And Pacquiao?
“Pacquiao fights in the low ‘40s. That means he has breakfast and lunch before the weigh-in where most fighters eat lightly, if at all. He’s done a few amazing things. It’s not like he’s going around knocking everybody stiff with one punch. He’s a boxer-puncher who has won on his boxing ability and his quickness.
“He’s not Superman’s son. He’s just a helluva fighter who has captured the imagination of the fight world and become a kind of international cultural figure who transcends the sport,” said Merchant.
He really thinks Pacquiao is clean.
“If (his trainer) Freddie Roach says he’s clean – and he’s as straight a shooter as there is in boxing – I believe Freddie Roach,” said Merchant.
The HBO analyst thinks the fight is going to happen and that there’s just so much money on the table that both camps, with Mayweather calling for random drug testing and Pacquiao going the other way, should find ways to do it.
If not in March, Merchant said the fight may happen later this year. “I’ve always looked upon these types of negotiations as a kind of ritual of dominance. ‘I can impose my will on you in the negotiations, therefore I can impose my will on you in the fight.’
Source: abc.net.au
Avatar has sped past the $US1 billion mark at the worldwide box office after three weekends in release, making it the fourth biggest movie of all time.
According to distributor 20th Century Fox, James Cameron's 3D sci-fi epic has earned $US1.02 billion ($1.135 billion), powered by sales of $US202 million during the New Year holiday weekend.
The only movies ahead of it are Cameron's Titanic ($US1.8 billion), The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King ($US1.12 billion) and Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest ($US1.07 billion).
After 17 days in cinemas across the US and Canada, Avatar has earned $US352.1 million, placing it at number 15 among all movies in terms of ticket sales.
Fox forecasts the film will end up in the $US500 million range in the North American market.
Cameron's 1997 drama Titanic - the biggest film of all time before accounting for inflation - earned $US601 million, followed by 2008's The Dark Knight with $US533 million.
Star Wars holds the number three berth with $US461 million.
"This is like a freight train out of control," said Fox distribution executive Bert Livingston. "It just keeps on going." Even Titanic could be threatened. When ticket price inflation is included, that film had earned just $US241 million after 17 days, according to tracking firm Box Office Mojo.
The non-North American total for Avatar stands at $US670.2 million.
The film is playing virtually everywhere and will reach Italy - its final market - on January 15.
Avatar is the tale of a disabled ex-Marine (Australian actor Sam Worthington) sent from Earth to infiltrate a race of blue aliens and persuade them to let his employer mine their homeland for natural resources.
It was reportedly the most expensive film ever made, with a budget of at least $US300 million.
Watch this spectacular 3 point winning shot by Kobe against Sacramento. Another masterpiece clutch shot from Lakers' No. 24!!
Source: Ward Porrill-Examiner.com
Further cementing its status as the movie to beat come Oscar time, Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker picked up three major wins from the National Society of Film Critics: Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor for star Jeremy Renner.
The Iraq War themed suspense-drama was the only film in contention to receive multiple awards.
It is also the lone film of 2009 to win Best Picture in all the major film critics groups' awards: L.A., New York, Chicago, and Boston.
In short, if you're not voting for The Hurt Locker in your Oscar pool this March, you might as well vote for Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel.
Other major wins from the NSFC were French star Yolande Moreau for Best Actress for her role in Seraphine, Mo'Nique for Best Supporting Actress for Precious, and a tie between Paul Schneider for Bright Star and Christophe Waltz for Inglourious Basterds for Best Supporting Actor.
Joel and Ethan Coen won Best Screenplay for A Serious Man while Agnes Vardas and Oivier Assayas won Best Documentary and Best Foreign Film, respectively, for The Beaches of Agnes and Summer Hours.
Best Cinematography went to Christian Berger for Palme D'or winner The White Ribbon and Best Production Design went to Nelson Lowry for his work on Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox.
Founded in 1966, The National Society of Film Critics' prestigious alumni once included influential critics such as Pauline Kael, Joe Morgenstern, and Richard Schickel. The group was formed after several of its members were denied entry into the New York Film Critics Circle.
Originally released in the U.S. on June 26, 2009, The Hurt Locker will be available on DVD and Blu Ray January 12th.
Watch the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GxSDZc8etg
